After Song Tinghuan had just finished tidying up her room, Shen Heng knocked on the door from outside.
“I have something urgent and need to return to the company. I’ll leave my brother in your care. Let’s add each other’s contact information. If anything happens, notify me immediately.”
“Okay.”
After adding each other on WeChat, Song Tinghuan glanced at his remark.
She saw that Shen Heng had labeled her as “No. 88 Song Tinghuan.”
What did that mean?
Had there already been eighty-seven nannies before her?
“Oh right, my brother’s legs need to be massaged for half an hour every day. You know how to do that, right?”
Song Tinghuan nodded vigorously.
“I do.”
“Good. Then go massage him now. I’m leaving first.”
Shen Heng hurried away while answering a phone call.
“Dad, I’m not wasting time over at my brother’s place. I’ll be there soon…”
Song Tinghuan only caught half the conversation, but she could not help feeling curious.
How was taking care of a disabled older brother considered a waste of time?
Still, the Shen Family’s affairs were none of her concern.
The most urgent matter was completing the first task her boss had assigned her.
And the first step was finding Shen Yuqing.
The second-floor bedroom—empty.
The study—empty.
The third-floor terrace—empty.
The first-floor living room—empty.
The kitchen—empty.
The bathroom—empty.
Where was he?
Standing in the living room with her hands on her hips, Song Tinghuan swept her gaze around the area.
Not even a ghostly shadow could be seen.
Her eyes lifted almost imperceptibly.
A tiny red light blinked in one corner of the ceiling.
“So that’s how it is.”
Song Tinghuan clapped her hands and changed direction.
The next second, her figure disappeared from the surveillance screen.
Shen Yuqing narrowed his eyes.
With a light swipe of his finger, the surveillance feed switched.
Second-floor bedroom—empty.
Study—empty.
Third-floor terrace—empty.
First-floor living room—empty.
Kitchen—empty.
The bathroom had no camera installed.
Where was she?
Shen Yuqing pressed a button and maneuvered his wheelchair toward the elevator.
The elevator was parked on the first floor.
He pressed the up button.
The moment he did, his eyebrows suddenly twitched.
He had come up from the first floor not long ago. The elevator should have been on the third floor.
But it was already too late.
The ride to the third floor took only moments.
Ding.
The elevator arrived.
The metal doors slowly slid open from both sides, revealing Song Tinghuan standing there.
And Song Tinghuan revealed eight perfectly white teeth in a standard smile.
“President Shen~” Song Tinghuan said with a smile. “It’s time for your massage~”
The pallor on Shen Yuqing’s face instantly turned ashen.
He turned around decisively.
“No need.”
He pressed the forward button.
Yet the wheelchair seemed to be held in place by some tremendous force.
The wheels did not move at all.
With both hands gripping the wheelchair handles, Song Tinghuan bent down and spoke like a demonic whisper in his ear.
“President Shen, allow me to give you a massage.”
“Let go.”
Shen Yuqing’s voice carried immense suppressed anger.
Song Tinghuan ignored him.
A minute passed.
Shen Yuqing closed his eyes briefly.
His hands resting on his knees clenched into fists.
Each word emerged as if squeezed through gritted teeth.
“I. Said. Let. Go.”
“I already did.”
This time, Song Tinghuan agreed very quickly.
Shen Yuqing pressed the button again.
The wheelchair still refused to move.
The curse words reached the tip of his tongue.
Then he saw Song Tinghuan walk around to stand in front of him, raising both hands to demonstrate that she had indeed let go.
Shen Yuqing narrowed his eyes.
His gaze fixed on her right hand.
His tone became dangerous.
“What is that in your hand?”
Song Tinghuan opened her fair palm.
“Here. It’s the battery.”
The veins at Shen Yuqing’s temples immediately bulged.
This Song Tinghuan actually dared to…
Dig. Out. His. Battery!
Grinding his teeth, Shen Yuqing said: “Put the battery back.”
Song Tinghuan replied innocently: “Sure. After the massage is finished.”
Shen Yuqing: “…”
Heh.
His wheelchair was not powered only by electricity.
He could move it manually.
Placing both hands on the wheels, Shen Yuqing exerted all his strength.
His biceps bulged.
The veins on the backs of his hands stood out prominently.
Yet the wheelchair remained completely motionless.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that someone had pressed down the brake lever at some point.
Shen Yuqing began taking deep breaths.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Again and again.
Song Tinghuan cautiously asked once more: “Can I massage you now?”
Shen Yuqing lifted his cold eyes and stared at her steadily.
Only after a long while did he force out two words through clenched teeth.
“You may.”
Song Tinghuan was absolutely certain that if looks could become physical blades, she would have already been sliced into thin strips.
But she was not afraid.
After all, Shen Yuqing was not actually going to jump up and hit her.
Song Tinghuan pushed him beside the sofa on the terrace.
She sat down on the sofa, bent forward, lifted one of Shen Yuqing’s legs, and placed it on her lap.
Throughout the entire process, Shen Yuqing remained expressionless.
Song Tinghuan rolled up the leg of his casual pants.
Then her movements suddenly halted.
A horrifying scar on his calf entered her sight without warning.
Like a centipede, it wound upward all the way toward his thigh before disappearing beneath his clothing.
Against Shen Yuqing’s cold, pale skin, it looked even more shocking.
No one noticed that Shen Yuqing’s jaw had tightened at that instant.
His gaze fixed on some point in empty space.
His pupils trembled ever so slightly.
Song Tinghuan froze.
Exactly the reaction he had expected.
No one saw his scars without feeling afraid.
Shen Yuqing sneered.
“So, you’re scared already?”
“It’s a good thing you became crippled.”
Song Tinghuan kept her head lowered as she examined the injury.
The rigidity in Shen Yuqing’s eyes eased for a moment.
A trace of astonishment appeared.
“What did you say?”
Song Tinghuan looked up.
Her almond-shaped eyes curved into crescents.
“If your legs still had sensation, they would probably hurt every day. Being like this must reduce a lot of the pain.”
Her smile was completely sincere.
She genuinely believed it.
In a cool voice, Shen Yuqing said: “Some kinds of suffering can be seen. Some cannot.”
But Song Tinghuan replied,
“Other than physical pain, all suffering comes from one’s values.”
“For example.” she explained: “if I failed to complete today’s massage task, and I happened to be a responsible person, then I’d feel guilty and suffer because of it. But if I weren’t responsible, I’d happily enjoy the free time.”
Shen Yuqing said: “…Then you can complete it now.”
“Exactly.”
The smile in Song Tinghuan’s eyes deepened.
“I’m a responsible person. Once I complete the task, I’ll be very happy.”
Carefully avoiding his scar, Song Tinghuan used professional techniques to gently massage the muscles in his leg.
After finishing the left leg, she moved on to the right.
From Shen Yuqing’s angle, all he could see was the crown of her head as she lowered it and concentrated on the massage.
But from Shen Heng’s perspective, watching through the surveillance camera, when he saw his brother obediently accepting the massage, tears immediately rolled down his face.
Assistant Xiao Han could not help poking him.
“Young President Shen, we’re in a meeting. Everyone’s still waiting for you to speak.”
The executives below all stared at their noses and their noses at their hearts, pretending not to see Shen Heng crying with tears and snot everywhere.
Once Shen Heng became emotional, he simply could not stop crying.
“Xiao Han, look at my brother. He’s finally willing to accept care from someone else.”
“You have no idea how I’ve gotten through these past days…”
“Heaven has eyes. My brother can finally be saved…”
Shen Heng sobbed and whimpered, looking like an eighty-year-old grandmother who had finally gotten to hold her grandchildren.
Xiao Han could barely stand to watch.
With a wave of his hand, he dismissed the executives first.
Shen Heng suddenly grabbed Xiao Han’s hand.
Xiao Han: ?!
With reddened eyes, Shen Heng looked at him eagerly.
“Tell Human Resources that I’m giving Song Tinghuan a bonus!”
Xiao Han nodded repeatedly.
“Got it, got it. I’ll pass the message along right away.”
Soon, Shen Heng was the only one left in the conference room.
After calming himself down and seeing through the surveillance feed that Song Tinghuan had gone off to do something else, he finally dialed his brother’s number.
“Big Brother, how was the massage? Have you changed your mind? Do you want her to stay now?”
Shen Yuqing let out a faint snort.
“Impossible.”